Increased scrutiny of sugar is having a ripple effect on the public health debate. In New York City, the sale of large sugary beverages is now banned in some venues. Nationally, insurers are taking more interest in your blood sugar.

You can expect that focus to increase: health reform nationally and in Oregon is shifting more resources to public health education and prevention of obesity and chronic diseases such as diabetes.

Critics call sugar addictive, even "toxic," while its defenders call the fears overblown. Recent coverage of sugar has ranged from its effects on rats to the sugar industry's efforts to sway the scientific debate. Playing defense, soda distributors are voluntarily embracing increased labeling.

What follows are some links to recent coverage of the backlash against sugar.:

Sugary drinks linked to higher stroke risk (The Chicago Tribune)Women who imbibe sugary soft drinks almost every day are 83 percent more likely to have a certain type of stroke than women who rarely drink sodas and other sweetened beverages, according to a new study from Japan.

Cutting back on sugar can only help your health (The Oregonian)...recent research claims that sugar may worsen conditions ranging from
heart disease to cancer, dementia and macular degeneration. The link has
not been proved, but some doctors say the connection is "highly
probable."

Big Sugar's Sweet Little Lies (Mother Jones magazine)The answer is found in more than 1,500 pages of internal memos, letters, and company board reports we discovered buried in the archives of now-defunct sugar companies as well as in the recently released papers of deceased researchers and consultants who played key roles in the industry's strategy. They show how Big Sugar used Big Tobacco-style tactics to ensure that government agencies would dismiss troubling health claims against their products.

Sugar as Dangerous as Alcohol and Tobacco? (ABCnews.com)Is sugar as dangerous as alcohol and tobacco? One group of researchers from the University of California, San Francisco, says so. And they are urging a tax on sugary treats and some action by the government to get Americans to cut back on sugar.

Is Sugar Toxic? (The New York Times Magazine)If Lustig is right, then our excessive consumption of sugar is the primary reason that the numbers of obese and diabetic Americans have skyrocketed in the past 30 years.

NYC Soda Rules Spur Calorie Counts on Vending Machines (Wall Street Journal)Vending machines selling drinks for Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group will begin displaying their products’ calorie information and messages intended to push consumers toward drinks with less sugar early next year in Chicago and San Antonio ... A national roll-out is expected to take a couple years.

Health insurance choice may make you healthier (The Durango Herald)Ratings now are available that will let customers know how different insurance plans stack up when it comes to ensuring their health. The data measure factors such as controlling high blood pressure and blood sugar, up-to-date immunizations and providing patients the correct drugs after they experience a heart attack.